Blog Post — 8
“The secret rules of a language” said Yates (2004) to identify Pragmatics. However, with the growing attention on the subject, it gets harder to claim that the rules are still uncovered. Pragmatics can be explained as using a language appropriately and accurately in human interaction. Pragmatic instruction has been combined with a bunch of teaching methods as well as types of technology-enhanced instructional types. Due to the scarcity of L2 Pragmatics textbooks and the lack of adequate instruction in classrooms, the digitally mediated interaction is viewed as one of the most promising ways to teach pragmatics properly by Blyth and Sykes (2020).
As the nature of pragmatics requires authentic input from the target language and the appropriate use of structures, the extracts from real context or the contexts that are specifically designed enable learners to get familiar with the appropriate use of a language. Thus, there is an ongoing search in the field to reveal the effective ways of teaching pragmatics through technology-mediated interactions. Thanks to the facilities of educational and data collection tools, both the instructions and the assessment of the instructions become easier for teachers and researchers. Moreover, engagement on social media platforms raises language learners’ awareness of the target culture and the language intentionally and/or unintentionally. Eventually, technology and pragmatic instruction turned into one of the most discussed issues in the field of Pragmatics.
References:
Blyth, C., & Sykes, J. (2020). Technology-enhanced L2 instructional pragmatics.
Yates, L. (2004). The’secret rules of language’: Tackling pragmatics in the classroom.
